Manaaki Kai, Visionwest’s social supermarket opened on Thursday 8 June.
The social supermarket opening

Chris Quin, CEO of Foodstuffs and Lisa Woolley, CEO of Visionwest, at the opening of Manaaki Kai.
At the opening, following a mihi whakatau and waiata, Lisa, our CEO, reminded us that we are on a journey to build hope together and, for some people, that hope is simply to put kai on the table for their whānau. Manaaki Kai will enable them to do that with dignity and mana.
Manaaki Kai has been established in partnership with Foodstuffs North Island Ltd – our buddy store is Pak ‘n’ Save Lincoln Road. This is the sixth social supermarket Foodstuffs have partnered with, and the first of its kind in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. Foodstuffs North Island CEO, Chris Quin gave thanks to his awesome team who have worked with Visionwest to create the social supermarket before talking of the relationship of trust that has built up between the two organisations.
Chris, spoke of his two favourite words in relation to the social supermarket, “dignity and respect” and of how a social supermarket helps make these a reality for whānau in our community. The news he most likes to hear is that a family no longer needs the support provided by the social supermarket. In working towards this aim, he spoke of Visionwest as having, “humility with a ferocious will.”
Social supermarket shoppers

Danielle Cleverdon is the Head of Kai Services at Visionwest.
Danielle Cleverdon, our Head of Kai Services, painted a personal picture of the whānau we support by telling us some of their stories; the young mother who had a whānau member drop off their children at her place and then never return to pick them up. She gets by on her own but can’t afford to feed the extra children. Another whānau, who works full time, often worries and stresses about where her next meal will come from. Rising costs continually eat into her food budget. Then there is the whānau who can only afford meat by putting it on credit which means they are falling further and further into debt that they will find difficult to escape from.
Danielle then spoke of those who have come to Visionwest for food support since the flooding earlier in the year.
We have whānau who have been flood affected and now find themselves in a situation they never in their worst nightmares imagined being in. We’ve had whānau who had no clue where to go for help because they’d never needed it before. Others resisted asking for help, insisting that there were others so worse off than them. Many of these people have now reached a point where they have exhausted their resources and are left with no alternative but to accept help so they can put food on their tables. These are the whānau from different lives and backgrounds that Manaaki Kai will help.
Looking back
A highlight of the opening event was the interview with the amazing Jean Abraham (Nana Jean) who, 31 years ago, began a foodbank that operated out of a cupboard at the church. She has seen that tiny venture grow into all that Whai Manaaki Kai is today. “Mindboggling,” is the word she used to describe her first walk through the supermarket aisles.
Manaaki Kai – the name for our social supermarket
Our social supermarket has been gifted the name Manaaki Kai. Fred Astle, our Pou Whakarae, Head of Māori Development, explained the name as being made up of two parts. The word “kai,” meaning food, is well-known. “Manaaki” means to support, nurture, look out for, or show respect and generosity and care for others.”
In other words, kai is what we do; manaaki is why and how we do it… we support others with food in a way that shows respect and generosity.
Those at the opening were given the opportunity to help these whānau by giving to help restock the Manaaki Kai shelves – you can support Manaaki Kai also.
What is a social supermarket?
For many whānau throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, putting enough food on the table each day is a struggle. For some, there is often a choice to be made – buy food or pay an essential bill. By supporting whānau with food, we can remove the need to make that choice by freeing up money for other essentials.

Manaaki Kai enables those experiencing food insecurity to shop with dignity and mana.
Social supermarkets run according to various models. Before embarking on establishing a social supermarket at Visionwest, we commissioned a feasibility study which can be read here; Visionwest Social Supermarket Feasibility Report.
Our social supermarket, Manaaki Kai, looks like a small, regular supermarket with shelves stocked with the food and grocery items a whānau needs to ensure they have good nutritious food each day – but it works a differently to a regular supermarket.
Whānau can visit the Visionwest Whānau Centre to book in a timeslot to shop at Manaaki Kai and will be allocated a number of points, depending on the size of their household.
Within Manaaki Kai, each grocery item is worth a set number of points. Shoppers can spend up to their point allocation on whatever groceries they choose.
Each shopper is asked to contribute an amount to Manaaki Kai. This helps to sustain the work but, more than that, it offers dignity to whānau as they are legitimately shopping for their groceries.
At the Manaaki Kai opening, Chris Quin spoke of a woman who had shopped at another social supermarket and told him of the delight she felt when asked by her children what she had done that day. She was able to reply, “I’ve been shopping,” whereas before she may have answered, “I’ve been to the foodbank.”
The need for a social supermarket
In Aotearoa New Zealand today, many people live with ongoing food insecurity simply because they cannot afford to makes ends meet. Many are working full time and still struggle to put food on their table.
40% of New Zealanders have food insecurity in their home at some point over a 12-month period. 19% of our children live in food insecure homes – that means, every week those homes struggle to provide good, nutritious food.
Shannon was going through a tough time when she was supported by Visionwest’s food support service – read Shannon’s story here.
Looking ahead
Manaaki Kai will not be able to immediately cater for all those who come to Visionwest for food support. Initially at least, our Pātaka Kai food parcel service will run in tandem with Manaaki Kai to provide emergency food support.
Manaaki Kai is one of four services that sits under Whai Manaaki Kai, the umbrella name for food support at Visionwest. Also part of Whai Manaaki Kai is our Pātaka Kai, Whata Manaaki, our food warehouse and packaging facility, and Te Kapu, our weekly free community lunch.
Find out more about Whai Manaaki Kai.